happy? That is not a silly question.
Montgomery encourages us to ask it without
CHARLES
MONTGOMERY
Charles Montgomery is an award-winning
author, urbanist, and leader of a consultancy
building more happiness into cities.
Primarily known for his books The Last
Heathen (2004) and Happy City (2013),
Montgomery has advised and lectured planners,
students, and decision-makers across Canada,
the USA and England.
He is the author of the book Happy City, about
which The New York Times wrote: “Happy
City is not only readable but stimulating. It
raises issues most of us have avoided for too
long. Do we live in neighborhoods that make us
embarrassment, and to think intelligently
about the answer.”
Happy City is a powerful argument for
improving quality of life in cities, an
introduction to visionary individuals leading the
way, and a compendium of strategies and tools
for achieving this goal. We recommend this
book most highly to all concerned with making
cities healthy and livable..
His acclaimed book, Happy City, Transforming
Our Lives Through Urban Design, examines the
intersection between urban design and the
emerging science of happiness. Collaborating
with the Guggenheim Museum, Charles has
created experiments and design methods that
help participants alter their relationships with
their cities, and with each other. Among his
numerous awards is a Citation of Merit from
the Canadian Meteorological and
Oceanographic Society for outstanding
contribution towards the public’s
understanding of climate change science.
Charles is a member of the United Nations
Sustainable Solutions Networks sub-council for
Happy Cities
happy city key idea #1: city suburbs were
designed to make us happier, but things
haven’t quite worked out that way.
happy city key idea #2: banning cars and
staying on top of maintenance keep
public spaces appealing
happy city key idea #3: parks that are
small but dense and diverse make urban
happy city key idea #4: crowdedness
makes us want to hide from the world; a
good city helps residents escape when
they need to.
residents happiest.
happy city key idea #5: decisions
concerning urban life aren’t immune to
bias and poor planning.
happy city key idea #6: self-propelled
mobility makes us happier, and clever
cities know how to encourage this
happy city key idea #7: the happiest
cities are driven by urban planning that
redistributes resources to the less privileged